


Wandering In Darkness

by WinterBite



Category: Elder Scrolls, Elder Scrolls Online
Genre: Child Death, Elder Scrolls - Freeform, F/F, Fanfiction, Fantasy, Inspired by Roleplay/Roleplay Adaptation, Original Character Death(s), Original Character(s), Sad, Sad Ending, Short, eső
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-18
Updated: 2019-12-18
Packaged: 2021-02-25 02:07:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,484
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21848158
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WinterBite/pseuds/WinterBite
Summary: This short story will come in two parts, following my character Salora's decent into madness.
Relationships: Family - Relationship, Sisters - Relationship
Comments: 1





	Wandering In Darkness

“Salora! Salora~.” A giggling little girl’s voice called out from somewhere within the forest. Two little girls around the age of 12, twins, were out playing just outside of their family’s estate despite constantly being told to stay within the safe walls of their home. Salora laughed and spun around in a little circle as she tried to pinpoint where exactly her sister’s voice was coming from. Salora’s lips pulled up in an amused grin and she called back in reply to her sister as she peeked around a tree, “The point of hide and seek is to not be found, Karene! You’re giving yourself away when you call out…” She trailed off as she quietly stalked toward another tree and leaped around it, expecting to find her twin there. Her lips pursed as she found nothing more than a rabbit scurrying off to disappear into a bush off to her left.

Another giggle could be heard again as Karene replied, “But you’re taking forever! We need to get back to the estate soon before mama comes to call us in for dinner, remember the last time we were caught playing in the forest?” Another giggle could be heard again as Karene replied, “But you’re taking forever! We need to get back to the estate soon before mama comes to call us in for dinner, remember the last time we were caught playing in the forest?”

Salora remembered all too well. Both her mother and father had been furious and sick with worry. Due to how wealthy the Vaniel family is, they often had to watch over their shoulders. It wasn’t uncommon to have an attempted break in every now and then in an attempt to steal their riches, for this reason the girls’ father had guards stationed within the estate walls to ensure the family’s safety. While this made sneaking out difficult for Salora and Karene, they still managed. Salora rolled her eyes and continued to stroll along in search for her sister, “Yes! They stuck each of us with a guard to supervise us throughout the day...we couldn’t do anything for a week, it was boring.”

Her sister’s voice rang out again, sounding much closer this time. “Exactly! The sun is going to begin setting soon too, so we need to hurry!” Salora had rounded around yet another tree just as her twin had finished speaking, a bright grin appearing on the little girl’s visage as she pounced on Karene. This earned a surprised squeal from the other little girl which was quickly followed by a laugh as the two sisters tumbled over the forest floor. 

Once the pair had came to a stop, Salora sat up over her sister and stuck out her tongue, “Found you! And for the record, that took less than ten minutes you worrywart.” 

Karene reached up to give Salora a playful push backwards, causing her to fall back onto her rear. “You took longer than that, I was keeping track!” She sat up and picked out a few branches and leaves that had gotten caught in her raven black hair from the tumble she took with Salora. The girls were fraternal twins, their facial features unique to one another save for the shared wavy dark hair and tanned skin. The only other thing that set the two apart were their eye color as well, Solara’s eyes were a striking bright grey while her sister’s were the color of the ocean.

Solara was about to retort when a voice rang out, “Karene, Solara! Dinner is ready!” The girls both froze and looked at each other wide eyed for a split second before they both scrambled onto their feet and took off running in the direction of their home where their mother was calling them back inside.The two girls slipped through a crack in the back wall of the estate that was hidden by a rosebush in their mother’s vast garden. They nearly tripped over each other as they rushed through the garden and around the variety of flowers and bushes until they finally rounded around the house and skidded to a halt at the bottom of the steps where their mother waited. The twins offered an innocent smile and looked up at their mother expectantly. 

Solara and Karene’s mother quirked a delicate brow and folded her arms over her chest as she softly hummed to herself and looked over her two daughters in mild amusement. She leaned over and plucked a leaf out of Solara’s hair and the two girls practically held their breath, fearing they had just been caught. “What did I tell you about playing around my rose bushes? I don’t want you accidentally destroying them, and you’re both filthy on top of that.” She softly chided and ushered the twins into the house, “Now go clean up and join us for dinner! Hurry before your food gets cold.”

The girls murmured quick replies to their mother as they hurried to clean themselves up then went to join their parents and three brothers for dinner. The rest of the night went by in a blur after that, the girls helped their mother clear the table before running off to pester their father while he worked while their older brothers went off to do their own thing. 

\----------

Several days later, Karene suddenly grew very sick and the entire family was in disarray as they desperately did what they could to help her Solara refused to leave her sister and often spent nights sleeping by her sister’s bedside. Her parents and brothers didn’t have the heart to separate the two, given how close they were. One was hardly seen without the other. 

Soon, a month had gone by and it had become apparent that Karene was slowly dying. Their father had brought various doctors and mages to attempt to figure out what had caused Karene to fall no ill but they all came up empty handed and there was nothing to do but to make Solara’s sister as comfortable as possible in her final days.  
Solara continued to vigilantly remain by her sister’s bedside, only leaving to take care of important necessities such as bathing. One day, as Solara was reading to her normally energetic twin, she interrupted Solara with a soft sigh and restlessly shifted under her blankets as she mumbled, “I want to give you something. I wanted to wait since your birthday is only a few days away but..I don’t want to wait anymore.” 

Solara lowered the book she had been holding and looked over to her sister’s pale face curiously, her gaze greeted by Karene’s weak smile. She canted her head slightly and inquired, “Why is that?”

Karene offered a small shrug before she reached up to unclasp a gold necklace that hung around her throat, a sapphire pendant in the shape of a teardrop dangling from the bottom of the chain. “I just feel that now is a better time, now come here.”

Solara bit down on her lower lip and quietly eyed her sister for a moment before she pulled her chair closer to her twin’s bedside and leaned over. She brushed her hair back as Karene reached up and around her to clasp the piece of jewelry around her neck. Once she was done, Solara leaned back and sat up. She looked down at the pendant that sat in the hollow of her throat and gently toyed with it between her thumb and forefinger, a gentle smile playing on her lips. “This is beautiful, Karene. Thank you!” She brought her gaze back to her sister and leaned in to gather her up in a hug and she could feel her sister softly returning her embrace., “I’ll always keep it on me.” She promised. 

Karene didn’t give a reply and she had fallen completely still. Solara’s chest tightened with dread and her stomach churned as her heart began to pound against her chest. “...Karene?” She whispered as panic and fear began to set in. She waited another moment and there was still no answer. “Karene!” She spoke a bit louder now and sat up, her sister’s arms limply sliding off her shoulders and falling onto the bed. Solara couldn’t breathe. Her eyes stung with tears and she swallowed past the lump that had appeared in her throat as she tried to look for a pulse on Karene, desperately denying to herself that her sister hadn’t just died then and there. There was no way, she couldn’t leave her. Not now. 

Her lips parted but no words came out, only a strangled sob upon finding absolutely no signs of life. Solara collapsed onto her sister’s chest and tightly held her left hand between her own hands and lost herself in grief. Her brothers found her not long after, sobbing over her now deceased sister and unable to let go.


End file.
